Tooth-straightening appliance.



UNITED f STAT S PATENT 4 OFFICE. i

CLARENCE D. LUKENS, OE ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

TOOIH-STBAIGHIENING ARELiAhlQE sPECmcATmN forming pert of Letters Patent in. 0,194, dated October 23, 1900: i

Application sleigh; a, 1900.

- To kill 1013 0111, it may concern.-

Bcit known that I, Cnansz'vcn D. LUKENS, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of St. Louis, in the State of Missouri, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Tooth Straightening Appliances, of which't-he following is a specification.

My invention relates to dental appliances, and has for its principal object to provide a device for moving and straightening teeth.

'It'con'sists principally in making the device which serves for clamping a band upon one tooth serve also'as a mounting for a bar or rod designed to exert force upon another tooth.

It also consists in making the clamping bolt of one tooth-band hollow to permits draw-bar to extend therethrough.

It also consists in combinations and arrangements of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed. In the accompanyingdrawings, which form partof this specification, and wherein like symbols refer to'like parts wherever they occur, Figurel is a view of my device. Fig. 2 is a view of the draw-bar with the socket end shown in section. ded tooth-band designed for mounting on the tooth to'bestraightened. Fig. 4 is a view of the clam pin g-band. Fig. 5 is a sectionalview -of the clamping-band with the bolt and drawbar assembled. Fig. 6 is a sectional view of the clam pingband and clamping-bolt, showing the draw-bar in position. Fig. 7 is a view illustrating the'method of using an arch with my device. Fig. 8 is a modification.

My device comprises a band oi sheet metal 1, having at each end a tubular sleeve 2 3, arranged to be in alinement when the band is clamped. One of these sleeves 2 is screwthreadcd'to cooperate with a tubular threaded bolt 4. I This threaded bolt 4 extends through the opposite sleeve 3, and its head bears against the end of said sleeve 3. This bolt thus serves to clamp saidband firmly in the tooth. i v

A threaded draw-bar 5 extends th rough the tubular clamping-bolt and has a threaded nut 6'workingthereon, which nut abuts against the end of the tubular bolt 4. The opposite end of said draw-bar has a lateral projection 7 psovided yvith a socket, which socket is of Fig. 3 is a view of the stud-' $erhl Bu. 22.407. (Edmodsl.1

is turned on saiddraw-bar, whereby the tooth to be straightened is pulled with a force de pending upon the position of the nut on the threaded draw-bar.

struction are that it avoids the use of projecting parts liable to cause irritation of the tongue. It makes the clam ping-boltserve the function of an abutment for the working nut, and thereby avoids the necessity for mounting a separate piece upon the clamping-baud, and by using a stud upon the tooth-band I secure a larger and firmer soldering-surface the two sleeves being mounted'on the ends of the band afford great facility for alinemeut, so

'vice wherein the threaded bar is used as a socket-piece is mounted on the end of the screw and in alinement therewith instead of projecting laterally therefrom, In use studded bands are cemented or otherwise suitably mounted on the tooth to be moved and on another tooth which serves as an abutment for the jack-screw. The screw-is first in- '-tube is fitted over the stud of one band and the socket-piece is fitted over the stud of the other band. The nut is then turned to bear ply force to the tooth. The most important advantages of this construction are its simplicity and the fact that the parts will'remain properly assembled even if the tooth should cease to resist the force applied.

It is obvious that the nut might be mountstead of at the end of the draw-bar farthest ted over the stud on said baud- Then the out The most important advantages of my cum than could otherwise be easily secured, and v as to gi ve the proper direction to the d raw-bar.-

Fig. 8 illustrates a modification of mydejack-screw. In this construction the tubular 1 serte'd in the tube 10, and then the end of the against the end of the, tube, and thereby aped on the draw-bar bet-ween the twoiteetliiif- ICO instead of a pull, as above described. It is;

also obvious that clamping-band's might be mounted upon molar teeth on opposito sides' of the jaw, in which case the threaded bar may be made. of arch form to copera to with both the said cI-ampingba-uds. In this case the force may be applied for straightening the tooth by means or devices adjusted along said arch-bar, as shown in Fig. 7.

My device admits of various other modifications, and I do not desire to be limited to the construction shown. Y

What I claim is;v

1. A tooth-straightening appliance comprising a'baud adapted to encircle a tooth and having tubular sleevesinoirnted on its ends, and one of said sleeves being screw-threaded, and a tubular bolt threaded tocoiiperate with said threaded sleeve, and attached meausfor operating on another tooth substantially as described. 1

2. A tooth-straightening appliance comprising a band to encircle a tooth, a tubular bolt adapted to clamp the endsof said band, a threaded barextending through said bolt and having a nut working thereon to abut against the end of said bolt, and nice-us for operatively connecting said bar to another tooth, substantially as described.

3. A tooth-straightening appliance come 4. A tooth-straightening appliance com-" prising a tubular member and escrow adapted to be inserted therein, and a nut working on said scre ','said screw having a socket-- piece at its and adapted to fit over a stud on the tooth-band, substantially as described.

5. A tooth-straightening appliance comprising a tubular member, a screw adapted go to be inserted therein, and a socket-pieoe at the end of said screw and adapted to fit overa stud on a tooth-band, substantially as de scribed. 1

. CLARENCE D. LUKENS.

Witnesses:

Jnzns A. CANE, MARY E. MEAD. 

